Using sound to see...
like a bat's flight through darkness...
that's the short way to explain
the science of sonography.
Diagnostic medical sonographers
use special equipment to direct safe,
high-frequency sound waves
towards a particular part of the body.
The echoes of those waves are collected
and turned into moving images
that reveal inner body structures.
These images are known as
sonograms or ultrasounds.
The sonographer selects particular images,
and records them for a physician to use
when making a diagnosis,
or for monitoring pregnancies
or medical conditions.
Sonographers may specialize in
obstetrics and gynecology,
or in a specific area of the body
such as the abdomen, heart,
or the circulatory system.
Diagnostic medical sonographers
need good interpersonal skills
to calm anxious patients and
explain the process in a reassuring way.
Sonographers' duties include
keeping patient records,
adjusting and maintaining equipment,
and preparing work schedules.
Most work in hospitals and clinics
or doctors' offices.
To enter the field,
credentials may be earned at either
the associate's or bachelor's degree level,
or by earning a one-year certificate
from a college or hospital.
Most employers prefer to hire sonographers
with a professional certification.
When a patient's condition isn't just skin-deep,
diagnostic medical sonographers
bring what's beneath the surface...
to light.